A/N – Thanks for the comments! I wanted you to be torn regarding Carly. It felt good to write Jason standing up to her. Carly really doesn't do boundaries. Sorry I'm late, work is insane right now.

Chapter 16

When they got to the docks, Carly wandered around under Micah's watchful eye and then sat on a bench staring at nothing in particular. At one point, he took a phone call and was distracted and Carly wandered off, heading down an alley. Her attention was piqued when she heard men arguing in Russian and when they switched to English she eased her way behind a crate trying to get as close as she could.

"We take the boy away tonight. Luke is going to meet us about an hour away at an airport. We'll take the plane. If he double crosses us, I'll sell the little bastard to the highest bidder. There are plenty of Corinthos's enemies that will be willing to use him as bait."

The other Russian man chuckled.

Carly tried to dial Jason's number and that is when she heard Micah calling her and the men stopped talking. She tried to move and crawl away, but they were drawn to her hiding place.

"What do we have here?"

She stared into his cold eyes, begging for her life with hers. "Please, I'm pregnant."

The man spat with a sinister gleam in his eyes. "Then you shouldn't eavesdrop. I know who you are and for your sake, I hope you didn't hear our conversation."

"I didn't. I just got here."

Carly started to cramp and tried to suck in the pain, realizing that she is in trouble. "Please don't hurt Cameron. He's just a little boy."

They laughed.

"You are a stupid little bitch aren't you?"

His thick, calloused hands dragged Carly up on her feet as a cramp sliced through her body. "I should kill you where you stand. Give me one good reason that I shouldn't?"

She felt something warm run down her leg and knows she's bleeding. "Because you could just let me bleed out right here."

They looked down and saw a trickle of blood drip down her leg and the man shoved her back and she fell to the ground hard, her phone tumbled across the docks out of reach.

"Let's go. We have more important things to do," Karpov said before leaving. The man took one last look at Carly and smiled and then moved away.

She cried as her body screamed at her, hoping that Micah would find her so she could tell Jason what she had heard.

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Claudia got comfortable and grabbed a bottle of water. The house was still not showing any signs of life, but about an hour into her surveillance, she finally caught a movement. A car slowly eased down the street and then pulled into the long, paved drive way. She has to be careful because it is still daylight, so she ducks down a bit. After the third car arrived, she called her men and asked them to make their way to the house and bring plenty of ammo. There is no reason to suspect Cam is there at this point, but she had a hunch that if he wasn't, they were bringing him. After an hour of activity and no sign of Cam, she grew a little restless. Her men were very close and could be there at a moment's notice. She dialed Johnny's phone, but he didn't pick up so she left him a message to call her back. It was hard reaching out to him because she still wasn't sure what was up and will feel like a fool if her hunch is wrong. When Karpov stepped out of a van with no sign of the kid, she knew the situation was serious. Cam had to be in that house somewhere even though Corinthos's guards had checked out the basement and found nothing. Something smelled and she was going to get to the bottom of it. The last light of day started to fade and she slipped out of the car and made her way to the house next door. Her men were waiting behind a long hedge.

"What do you have for me?"

"The bug we left on the tree is functioning. From what we can translate, there is a sublevel. They are moving Cam tonight. Luke is bringing the money."

"Assholes."

Her phone vibrated, making her jump, as she clicked a button to answer.

"Claudia?"

"I need help. Bring all the firepower you can to that house I've been watching. They are moving Cam tonight."

Johnny froze. "He was there the whole time?"

"There's a sub-basement. We need to move now. They just mentioned that the plane will be ready in an hour. That means they'll probably leave in about thirty minutes."

"Claudia, don't do anything stupid."

"There's not time. I'm going in. My men are going to create a diversion. You should get here right around the time all hell is breaking lose. There's no traffic, so it should take you about forty minutes or less. I'll protect him with my life. You have my word. Elizabeth needs her son back."

"Be careful. I'm on my way."

"You too."

Johnny called in all the big guns and they quickly loaded a few SUV's with heavy firearms and took off. He called Jason who was talking to Sonny, who had showed up after Carly left, and they jumped in his car and left everyone at the mansion wondering what the hell is going on.

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Claudia closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she hid behind a tree at the back of the house. It was now or never. The air seemed thick and she struggled to breathe deeply and calm herself as her nostrils flared. Gunfire erupted in the front yard, shattering the silence, and when the guards in the back took off to help, she ran like her life depended on it to the back door and slowly opened it as she steadied her breathing. It was quiet and still even though every space around the house is a war zone. Hearing Russian on the porch, she guessed it is Karpov barking directions and carefully makes her way to the front door and slips the lock on, figuring it would buy her a few seconds. Every hair on her arm is standing up as she creeps towards the kitchen and her eyes lock with a startled guard. Before he can respond, her arms lift and she fires, shooting him in the head before he crashes to the floor. Stepping over his body, she heads towards the basement door before jumping to the side when two guards came running out of the opening. Without a thought, the bullets from her gun find their target before they even know she is there. Quickly, she hurries towards the stairs and begins to descend. When she makes it to the basement, her eyes rake the room as beads of sweat pepper her forehead. Luckily for her, they had left the door to the next set of stairs open so she runs into the darkness and ends up at the sub level, face to face with an older woman. The hold on her gun never wavers as she stares the woman down. "Who are you?"

"Karpov's mother in law. Did you come for the boy?"

Claudia nodded.

"Thank God."

"Where is he?"

The woman took a deep breath. "Cam, it's okay to come out."

Claudia watches as the shy boy crawls out of a basket full of clothes. She lowers her weapon and smiles, noticing how much he favors his mother. "Hello Cameron. My name is Claudia and I'm going to take you to your mommy."

Cam's face lit up. "Mommy!"

"Yes baby, come here."

He ran as fast as his little legs could carry him.

"I need you to wrap your arms around my neck and hold on tight. I'm going to carry you out of here."

"Okay."

"And you have to close your eyes the whole time so you don't see the bad men. Okay?"

He nodded and his eyes sealed shut as she lifted him.

"Are you leaving me here?"

"Yes. My only responsibility is Cameron and you helped keep him away from his mother."

"I had no choice. He was going to kill me."

"I'd rather die than do what you did. At least I'd have some honor. I'm letting you live because you were good to him, but that is as far as my charity extends."

Claudia ran up the stairs and made sure no one is in the kitchen before hurrying through the doorway. The battle out front sounded tenuous with bullets striking the house. Cam whimpers and tightens his grip as she runs towards the back door with her knowing that there is only a short window of time to escape. Everything depended on her getting into the woods unscathed. There is a cabin not too far away and that is where she was going to hole up until help could arrive.

Out front, the PCPD, led by Mac, had arrived before Jason and they realized they were sorely outnumbered. He hears someone cry out and see's Ronnie fall to the ground. Two officers grab him and pull him behind a car. From what Mac can tell, it hit him in the leg.

"Do you want help?" Jason asked as he approached Mac.

"Under normal circumstances, I would say no, but I don't want to bring any of my men home in a body bag."

"Cameron is in there and I have no problem being in the front line. We'll take the lead and clear a path."

Mac is shocked. That changed everything. "Okay."

They moved forward and Jason started taking out men systematically, knowing they had to move fast. Mac couldn't help but wish that Jason was on their side. His shooting ability and fearlessness are a sight to behold. Nothing seemed to faze the enforcer even with bullets whizzing by his head like his glare had deflected them.

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Claudia ran towards the woods and just when she was about to clear the first tree, a stray bullet seared into her arm. She cried out in pain, but kept running as fast as she could, because she couldn't let them take the little boy. Elizabeth would never forgive her. Knowing the shot was weakening her, she tries to stay focused as Cam's whimpering fills her ear. "Hold on Cam. Please, hold on." His little fingers tightened around her as he squeezed his eyelids tighter. The bad men are coming to get them and he's scared.

Everything around her is a blur and she feels like she's running in place and will never get to their destination. Tears sting her eyes as she realizes she might not make it. By the time she finally sees the small cabin, her arm is useless and she feels a little dizzy. She stumbles towards it and barely makes it to the door before putting Cam down and then fishing the key out of a planter. A few days before, she had given the shack owner some cash and then had her guards change the locks. Her breathing is staggered and she knows the bullets must have hit an artery. The door finally gives way and they move inside and she tries to stop the bleeding by holding a towel she found in the kitchen on her arm. She knows the flimsy lock won't hold their enemies at bay, but she's in no condition to push something against it. "Cam, you sit on the couch okay?"

He nods, but his eyes don't leave her once he's settled.

She pulls out her phone as she collapses onto the floor. Johnny is in the kitchen of the other house, following Jason who had just ran into the basement.

"Claudia? Where are you?"

Jason freezes on the steps and looks back.

"I'm in a small cabin straight back from the house."

He can hear the emotion and stress in her voice. "Are you alright? How is Cam?"

"He's fine, but I've been shot and I think they hit an artery. Hurry."

He yells to Jason and then fills him.

"We're coming right now."

"Tell Mac what is going on. We'll need a helicopter," Jason yells before taking off.

The shooting has stopped and Johnny hurries towards Mac and lets him know the situation and the man makes a call.

"I know where they are and we can take the car almost all the way there," Mac says. He hunts a lot and knows these woods like the back of his hand.

"Let's do it then," Johnny says.

He jumps in the car with Mac and they silently head down a dirt road.

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All Jason can hear is the sound of his harsh breathing as he runs through the woods. Thankfully, there's still enough light where he can see where he's going for the most part. Dodging around trees and stumps, he hopes he's still going in the right direction, but feels like he's not going fast enough. Cam is probably scared out of his mind and the thought of the little boy needing help made his burning muscles scream as he moved even faster. Finally, he sees the cabin and finds the strength to break out in a sprint as he closed the distance. By the time he gets there, he can hear Cam crying as he says Claudia's name.

He kicks the door in and Cam jumps and screams and then recognizes him and lifts up his arms. "Hey Cam. It's okay, buddy."

He kneels down and takes Claudia's pulse as Cam clings to his shirt. It's weak, but she is still alive. Quickly, he figures out where the wound is and then pries off Cam's fingers and assures him as rips his shirt off. He finds some scissors in a kitchen drawer and cuts into it and then tears some strips to use as a tourniquet. Moving back to her, as Cam follows, he ties two strips above the wound and then shakes her. "Claudia, wake up—now!"

Her eyes flutter partially open and her gaze is drawn to Jason's impressive chest. "Am I dreaming?"

"No. Just hold on."

"Cam?"

"He's right here."

Jason moves a little and Cam is in his arms holding on tight. With his right hand, he secures the boy against him and with his left, he brushes Claudia's hair off her face. When he hears a noise, he grabs his gun and points it. Johnny and Mac come into view and Jason stands up as Johnny takes his place.

Claudia's face grows paler and Johnny leans closer so she can whisper. "I'm sorry. In the car, there is a piece of paper in my wallet under the seat. It has the address where Maxie is."

"Shhh. I'm going to lift you and take you to the helicopter. Don't you give up on me."

Their eyes are locked in battle and then she blinks a few times as her eyes roll back and she passes out.

"Dammit!"

He gathers her in his arms and takes off. Jason follows with Mac covering them.

"There's a clearing to the right," Mac yells.

Johnny moves as fast as he can and finally, they break through the field and he sees the helicopter in the distance and sits on the ground cradling her.

Jason whispers calming words to Cam and is shocked when the little boy looks like he's falling asleep.

"It was probably all the excitement," Mac says.

The helicopter lands and an EMT jumps out and gets Claudia on a transit backboard and then Johnny helps him carry Claudia inside. There isn't enough room for them all to go, so they decide that Jason will go with Cam and Claudia and the rest will follow.

Once the copter is in the air, Johnny calls Paulie and tells him to go to Claudia's car and get her wallet and then he runs to Mac's car so they can get to General Hospital.

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Sam left a note for Jason and a phone message and grabbed her bag and left. She is nervous leaving him, but she decided that she needs to have faith in their relationship. Stressing over it wasn't going to help anything. Sadly, she gets into her car and starts to drive to Canada to follow a lead, hoping that when she comes back, she and Jason can have a long talk about their future.

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Francis enters the mansion and finds everyone in the sitting room.

"Where did Jason go?" Monica asks.

"They got a lead on Cam."

Liz jumped to her feet. "Please tell me that they found him."

Francis starts to respond when his phone rings. "Johnny?"

"Get Liz to G.H. Cam is fine, but Claudia was shot."

"Is she okay?"

"I don't know. She lost a lot of blood. Jason has Cam."

"We'll be right there."

Liz was now standing beside him as she nervously shifted from side to side.

"Cam is fine, but Claudia isn't. We need to get to the hospital."

Everyone runs to get their things and they head out, hoping that Claudia is going to make it.